This book cannot be reproduced without the express
permission of Wendell C. and/or Jean C. Tombaugh, their heirs or assigns.

First printing 1990

Second printing 1994

Made in the United States of America.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP

Nichols 1

Mentone 41

Hamman 167

SEWARD TOWNSHIP

Yates 171

Garvin 171

Franklin 173

Fairview 179

Bethel 185

Germantown 189

INDEX 195

FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP

NICHOLS CEMETERY

The land was donated in 1843 by Prosper Nichols. The first burial is
said to have been a child of Samuel Shields. Prosper Nichols was a settler in
Franklin Township in 1839, a former resident of Harrison County, Ohio, and died
in 1868.[1][stone in Row 12 shows Prosper Nichols d. Oct 18, 1866]

The following article, written by Fannie Moore, was furnished to the
compilers by Velma Bright, Librarian, Carnegie Public Library, Akron, Indiana
on August 15, 1975 for inclusion herein:

Solomon Nichols, whose gravestone I could not find, donated the land
for Nichols cemetery (date unknown) with one restriction: no lots were ever to
be sold; and to this day as far as I could learn, that restriction has always
been held sacred. Families with relatives buried there were expected to help
pay for upkeep, and that also has been observed. A trust fund made up of
donations provides part of the cost of upkeep. Some donors for upkeep have
preferred to give yearly. The cemetery has been well taken care of.

Many of the old gravestones have eroded to the extent that names and
dates are too indistinct to read. Other donations of land have been made in
later years, but the rules apply to that land, too.

When the cemetery first came into use there was no building for
funeral services. Logs were laid in rows for seats for mourners. Later a chapel
was built, equipped with heating stoves, benches and an organ. Not many years
ago it fell into disuse and was not kept in repair. So the trustees sold it. It
was moved into an adjoining pasture field and later caught fire and was burned
to the ground.

Two brothers of the Burns family, descendants of Solomon Nichols,
became Methodist preachers. Robert Burns was a circuit rider and preached as he
traveled. Later he became the first district superintendent of an area covering
northern Indiana, Ohio and Illinois, covering all of his territory on horse
back. His brother, James, was termed an "exhorter" and preached for
many years. The graves of these two devout men are in Nichols cemetery, marked
by copper memorial plaques set in cement at the foot of the gravestones. This
was accomplished by the Akron Methodist church several years ago and paid for
by money given by the descendants of these two men. James Burns was born in
1792 and died in 1872. Robert Burns died in 1877 but I didn't get the date of
his birth. However the dates are on the plaques. --- by Fannie Moore.

Located on the South side of 950S, approximately 1/2 mile west of
S.R. 19, in Franklin Township, Kosciusko County, Indiana. A sign on the gate
shows: Nichols Cemetery Assn., Inc., Joe Miller, Omar Leininger, Robert
Heighway, Ruth Heighway, Sec., Akron R#2.

The cemetery is divided into the North and South Sections. Rows run
North and South, and are numbered from West to East; stones were read from
North to South.

Readings were made by Jean C. and Wendell C. Tombaugh in 1976 and
1990.